Will the Washington Redskins change their name in 2026?
No. The team is not the Redskins and will not become the Redskins in 2026. It has been the Washington Commanders since February 2, 2022, and owner Josh Harris has said flatly the name stays. What is changing for 2026 is the uniform, not the name.
In brief
No. The team is not the Redskins and will not become the Redskins in 2026. It has been the Washington Commanders since February 2, 2022, and owner Josh Harris has said flatly the name stays. What is new for 2026 is the uniform, not the name.
The name already changed, years ago
Washington's organization underwent a rebrand after announcing in July of 2020 that it was retiring the name "Redskins," which had been in use since 1933. The team played as the Washington Football Team for the 2020 and 2021 NFL seasons before fully rebranding as the Washington Commanders in 2022. On February 2, 2022, the team revealed its new name and brand identity: the Washington Commanders.
The new name came 18 months after the franchise dropped its old moniker following decades of criticism that it was offensive to American Indians. On July 2, 2020, after the murder of George Floyd and the resulting national conversation on race, FedEx, the title sponsor of the team's stadium at the time, called on the franchise to change its name. Nike removed Redskins apparel from its website the same day, and the next day the league and the organization announced they were reviewing the name.
Harris: the Commanders name is not going anywhere
The Washington Commanders' name is not changing. Owner Josh Harris settled that question during his postseason news conference, a topic that had remained a big one in Washington since the organization rebranded. "I think it's now embraced by our team, by our culture, by our coaching staff. So we're going with that," Harris said.
The name had been widely criticized by part of the fan base, many of whom wanted a return to the team's former name, a notion Harris struck down multiple times, including in August 2024 when he said, "For obvious reasons, the old name can't come back." A Washington Post poll from April 2024 found that 58% of local Commanders fans did not like the name, but since then the Commanders drafted quarterback Jayden Daniels, who helped lead the team to its best season in more than three decades. "The name Commanders means something," Harris said. "It's about players who love football, are great at football, hit hard, mentally tough, great teammates."
Trump's pressure and the RFK stadium angle
The name debate got louder in the summer of 2025. President Donald Trump escalated his call for the Washington Commanders to change their name back to the "Redskins," threatening to restrict the NFL team's stadium deal if they didn't, though it was unclear how he would be able to do so. Trump wrote on his social media site: "I may put a restriction on them that if they don't change the name back to the original 'Washington Redskins,' and get rid of the ridiculous moniker, 'Washington Commanders,' I won't make a deal for them to build a Stadium in Washington."
The plot of land for the new stadium is owned by the federal government, but even there Trump doesn't have absolute control over its fate. After years of lobbying by the city, Congress passed a bill that gave the District of Columbia more control over the 190-acre riverfront plot. Harris still did not move. The Washington Commanders have said they have no plans to change their name.
So what actually is changing in 2026: the uniforms
The Commanders kept the name and changed the look. On April 15, 2026, the team unveiled its new uniform closet, bringing back "Super Bowl-era" burgundy and white looks as primary uniforms, paired with a revamped gold pants design and updated block-style lettering. Washington returned to the traditional helmets, jerseys and pants worn by the franchise since 1979, a look in which the club won three Super Bowls (XVII, XXII, and XXVI) and four NFC titles.
Washington's updated three-uniform set is headlined by the black "Hail Raiser" look with a new alternate logo. The team unveiled an alternate jersey dubbed the Hail Raiser, featuring a spear knifing through the burgundy W on both sides of a black helmet. The Commanders will wear the all-black alternates no more than four times during the 2026 regular season.
NFL rules require a team to submit permanent alterations to the league for approval a year in advance. Teams can change their look every five years, but an ownership change provides an exemption, Josh Harris bought the team in 2023. That exemption is why the 2026 redesign was possible at all.
Fans can visit the Commanders Team Store at Northwest Stadium, with additional items available as the start of the 2026 season approaches. Season Ticket Members received first access to new jerseys and apparel at the team store on April 15.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
